망개떡의 주원료인 청미래덩굴 잎은 소금물에 저장한 후, 이용 시 세척하여 사용한다. 이에 염장 시 저장 과정에서의 잎의 특성변화를 확인하였다. 천일염과 정제염으로 염장 후 저장한 잎의 수분함량 변화 에서는 차이를 보이지 않았으며, 소금의 농도가 높을수록 수분함량은 크게 감소하였다. 실온에서는 정제염에 저장한 잎의 전단력이 높았으나, 저온(4℃)에서는 천일염에서 저장한 잎의 전단력이 높았고, 소금의 농도는 높을수록 저장기간은 짧을수록 전단력이 높아지는 경향을 보였다. 실온보다 저온에서 저장과 소금의 농도가 10% 이하에서 저장한 잎의 색도 변화가 적은 것으로 나타났다.

The antimicrobial activities of Smilax china L. against spoilage bacteria isolated from Mang-gae rice cake were investigated and the storage stability of the Mang-gae rice cake was enhanced. Spoilage bacteria, which cause Mang-gae rice cake to rot, were isolated from commercial Mang-gae rice cake, and most of the isolated strains were identified as Bacillus sp. After the leaves, roots, shoots, and stalks of the Smilax china L. were extracted using 50% ethanol as the solvent, their antimicrobial activities were investigated using the paper disc method by treating them with 50 μL of Bacillus cereus, which is known as a major pathogenic micro-organism in foods that contain starch, as the test organism. The antimicrobial activities of the extracts were compared according to the size of the clear zones around the paper discs. The root extract showed significant antimicrobial activities. When red beans, which are used as stuffing for Mang-gae rice cake, were treated with the root extract of the Smilax china L., the viable cell count of the Mang-gae rice cake was 5.04 Log CFU/g after 48-hr storage, and the cake showed significantly slower growth of bacteria than with commercial products. These results show that treatment of red beans with Smilax china root extract could improve the storage stability of Mang-gae rice cake.